The Kent Little League ages 11-12 All-Star baseball team fell 6-3 on Tuesday evening to Bonney Lake/Sumner.
Kent’s second loss eliminated it from the district tournament. Kent opened the tournament with a crushing 12-0 victory over Chinook Little League.
Nate Anderson blasted two home runs and Brandon Ivanich added a homer. Starting pitcher Nick Musga threw for four innings in the game, which ended on a mercy rule.
After a 2-0 loss to Auburn on Sunday, the team resumed its romp with a 16-0 victory over the Fife-Milton, Edgeview/Soundview team.
After a single run in the first inning, James Spickelmier hit a home run to drive in three runs. Nate Franceschina followed up with another home run. Drew Biggerstaff sealed the deal with a grand slam later in the inning.
“It was done in four,” said coach Dave Anderson, “which is what we needed for our pitching to stay in shape.”
Team manager Greg Knack said that he believes that the shutout games were largely due to Kent’s strong baseball community.
“This is my third year involved with Little League and going back through the history for the last 15 years they have put good teams together,” Knack said. “Even with the number of Little League families diminishing, we still put the talent out. It’s a pretty good feeling to watch these kids develop and continue to play.”
Elsewhere: The Kent Little League ages 10-11 All-Stars won the District 10 tournament in Federal Way on June 27 by winning four straight games.
The team outscored its opponents 41-1 overall, with six home runs and 50 hits. Pitchers Ty Collins, Jaden Price, Peter Dionne-Yahr and Jalin Price threw 28 strikeouts and gave up only five walks and one run.
Jacob Yang hit three home runs while Peter Dionne-Yahr, Jaden Price and Ty Collins hit a single homer each. Every all star player had at least one hit and one run during the tournament. The team will represent Kent at the state tournament in Chehalis starting July 19.
“The boys were excited, but it was a milestone on their way to a state victory,” said manager Kynan Patterson. “It was certainly elation with the knowledge that there’s more work to do.”
Patterson also noted that it took mental toughness to stay invested in the game with a score so far ahead of the opposition.
“It was a challenge to compete hard throughout the whole game, and that’s the result of winning every game,” he said. “We really did try to win every inning to keep them focused. Because when you get up 7-0, your brain goes somewhere else.”
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